I was reading this old post after inspecting my small diameter friction savers to see how they are doing. I have a question that was not answered in the previous postings.

Is the material used by Elliot the same as the one used by Treetramp?

My two sleves made by Treetramp are in perfect condition after one year of use. The only thing that I have done is replace the tape covering the end caps but the material appears in good shape. FYI: I never drop the sleve from the tree since it is always lowered by riding the rope down and then I remove the rest of the rope from the TIP. I do not know if that makes a difference from what others climbers are doing or if the problem Moss described is related to the material that Elliot used (that appears to me to be different to the one used by Treetramp.)

I hope either one of them will post something or contact me by private message if they prefer that way.

I've had wear problems with sleeves from Elliot and New Tribe (black House sleeves). I can't see any difference in the exterior vinyl material, I believe they are the same spec. Since many of you are not having wear problems it may be that I'm being too aggressive with them. Treetramp has sent me some black sleeves to test, I will observe closely how my use effects wear.

I really like the black sleeves and continue to use them. My current strategy is that when I'm running a group climb I use the indestructible gray House sleeves. When I'm climbing on my own I use the black sleeves to take advantage of their light weight and portability.

The wear occurs when the sleeve is on the branch, the vinyl is abraded and eventually breaks down over many climbs. Dropping the sleeves to the ground doesn't seem to cause any problem. In other words it is a friction wear issue not an impact problem.
-moss

The material that I saw in the Su sleves in Colorado was different than that one I got from Dan from his first batch. That material was more flexible and plastic like than that one my sleves are made out. I think that may be the problem that you are having with your sleves. The new material that Elliot used on the second batch is different than the one he had in Oregon the first time I saw his sleves.
I wish any of those guys would shed some light into this mistery!

Sorry for the delay in response but I needed to inspect as many black jacket conduits as I could.

All of the ultra-flexible conduits are covered with a black vinyl (PVC) with a vacuum forming process.

Of all of the sleeves I could inspect, the specification numbers were only visable on two. Each had the same numbers and they felt a little "looser" than a third one; a fourth had no number and felt "tight".

My conclusion is that all PVC is the same and the black vinyl jacket will soften with use.

Hope this helps,
Dan

I know this thread about conduit rope sleeves is old, but I've only just noticed it (I've not been keeping up with the forums, I must admit).

I want to remind everyone that you can buy the conduit from McMaster-Carr (PN: 8069K13 and called "Ultra-Flex" within the "Liquid Tight Flexible _meta_l Conduit" category) very inexpensively (currently $1.93/foot). When your sleeve starts to show some wear, simply remove the endcaps and screw them into a new length of conduit. I like to put some colored gaffers tape around the lip of the endcap so that the black sleeves are more visible and I can see how they are positioned. I have sleeves in a few lengths and use a different color tape for each length so that I can grab what I want more easily.

For those who'd like to get a hold of some endcaps, I've listed here (on my terribly out-of-date Flickr site) where you can get the endcaps, too.

eriebuoy wrote:
I know this thread about conduit rope sleeves is old, but I've only just noticed it (I've not been keeping up with the forums, I must admit).

I want to remind everyone that you can buy the conduit from McMaster-Carr (PN: 8069K13 and called "Ultra-Flex" within the "Liquid Tight Flexible _meta_l Conduit" category) very inexpensively (currently $1.93/foot). When your sleeve starts to show some wear, simply remove the endcaps and screw them into a new length of conduit. I like to put some colored gaffers tape around the lip of the endcap so that the black sleeves are more visible and I can see how they are positioned. I have sleeves in a few lengths and use a different color tape for each length so that I can grab what I want more easily.

For those who'd like to get a hold of some endcaps, I've listed here (on my terribly out-of-date Flickr site) where you can get the endcaps, too.

A belated thanks for doing the research and posting the _link_s. I really like the qualities of the ultra flex black conduit despite the fact that it wears quickly (compared to the heavier-duty gray conduit). I just ordered 20 ft. and will swap out the endcap/ferrules from my current sleeves when they wear out.

Hey Erie! If you're listening, are going to attend the Bob Wray/Blue Ridge get together in North Carolina in late April? Check out the Announcements forum for more info.
-moss